So, you want to be a rockstar? And a wedding photographer, and manage your own business? As well as set up your own website? Awesome! These days there are so many tools and resources to help you get your feet on the ground and create a banging wedding photography website that converts like crazy! I’m going to lay out a simple road map to show you how to build a photography website.
The thing is, your wedding photography clients expect you to have a website. So even if you start with just a simple portfolio, have a clear offering, and your contact details – you’ll be ready to get things moving. Here are some simple steps on how to create a photography website on your own.
Step 1: Buy A Domain, Web Host And Email
Go to a site like Namecheap, GoDaddy, or Google Domains and search any of the names you want your website to be called – it will show you which names are available. Usually, as a photographer, you use your own name as your brand identity but you can also create your own brand name.
Step 2: Design Your Site
Congratulations! You’ve done all the hard and boring admin thus far (and you thought you didn’t know how to make your own photography website? Ha!).
There are two main things to think about for gorgeous and effective wedding photography website design: what information are your clients looking for and how do you lay that out with your different pages?
How To Structure A Website That Converts
Pages that are always good to have are Home, About, FAQ, Gallery, and Contact. Definitely include a blog page too, so you can use long-tail keywords and increase traffic to your site – this is key to creating consistent wedding photography website content!
Think about your ideal client and start writing down how you’d describe your photography style, your approach, how you’ll work together, and what to expect on the day of a shoot. Reassure them that you’re the photographer for them.
The Best Wedding Photography Website Builders
If you want help building your website, take a look at Showit. It’s a website builder like WordPress but waaaay more visual (perfect for creatives like us!). Use this link to get one month free: https://account.showit.co/r/ashleigh. If you go with WordPress, these are some really helpful plug-ins for photographers.
When it comes to aesthetics, this is where I’m going to share a trick I have hiding up my sleeve. Shhhhh – don’t tell anyone! Spend a little extra and buy a professional template – they make your life much easier and you get a totally sophisticated, polished look. Many of the very best wedding photography websites do just this thing.
I use a fantastic tool called Seventhmade, which is perfect for photographers with beautiful portfolios. They offer elegant, professional templates that you customise with your own photos and are easy to use with both Showit and WordPress, which is why I love them. I’ve got the hook-up for a 15% discount on all templates using the code ASH15, so check them out! It’s the type of wedding photography website template I wish I had when starting.
Step 3: Build Your Site
Now that everything looks profesh and elegant, it’s time to flesh out the rest of the site! Make sure you upload your portfolio into your template and fill in all the info for your packages, contact details, and any special offers you have on.
Simple, engaging, and user-friendly content for photography websites is key! Put the most important information first, use clear headings, strong call-to-actions, broad keywords, and web-optimised images to ensure your site loads quickly.
Your photography website blog can take shape slowly. Remember to write blogs consistently and upload them to the site – this can also happen once the site is published though so don’t worry too much! The key is to just get started.
Step 5: Publish And Manage Your Website
THE TIME HAS COME! Your website is ready to be published – what a great feeling it is to push that button! Now you just need to manage your site – keep it fresh and review it every few months to make sure everything is still up to date with any new blogs, new galleries, or new services to offer).
An important part of maintenance is doing an audit to help improve your SEO – check for any broken links, analyse your keywords, and explore what the user experience is like on your website. You can learn to do this yourself or outsource it, depending on what suits your time and pocket more!
If you follow this simple guide, you’ll create a visually impeccable website that showcases your work and converts. This is your slice of internet real estate, so don’t be afraid to shine through in what makes you YOU because that is your biggest superpower!
I hope this guide is helpful in learning how to build a photography website. As a Melbourne wedding photographer with 10 years of experience, I also coach other wedding photographers to get their businesses started and hit the ground running. Get in touch for business workshops and 1-to-1 coaching, and snag your free photography marketing guide here!
